Current computer systems generally store knowledge in a database, where said knowledge is often stored as data and said data is laid out in (in decreasing scope) databases, schemata, tables, records, objects, and fields, as collections of documents in tabular form (such as in a spreadsheet or array), or in a form designed by the author of a computer application program. Such data storage structure is typically designed by a person or another program acting on original instructions from a person. The collections of documents may be indexed, for example, according to search rules, with a program to respond to search queries, returning a list of results in some order, such as most-likely-useful-to-least.
These prior art computer systems do not allow data and instructions to be presented without instruction or design, and to be acted upon. Existing systems such as Eliza (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ELIZA) and Parry (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PARRY) also emulate such a system by pretending to understand what is said to them, but do not actually understand what is being said or what they are saying.
Therefore there is a need for a computer to act as a conversational, free-form, intelligent repository of knowledge, able to accept general statements and questions, and to respond in kind, without regard to any sort of script or limitation on subject or complexity.